Wellington/New Delhi, Mar 23 (UNI) New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, who was in India for bilateral talks with PM Narendra Modi during which the latter raised the issue of “anti-India activities” by Khalistani elements, has asserted New Zealand’s commitment to uphold freedom of speech.
In an interview with 1News, Luxon was asked whether he was surprised by comments by PM Modi on alleged “anti-India” and “illegal” terrorist activity in New Zealand.
Luxon said he wasn’t taken by surprise by PM Modi’s remarks, stuff.co.nz reported.
“No, he shared with me, a broad assessment from the Indian perspective about what they saw as a global risk around that with respect to terrorism. I listened to that. I also said privately to him and publicly to media as well that we have a liberal democracy in New Zealand,” Luxon said.
“People need to be compliant with our laws and we have a police force that does an excellent job of enforcing that.
“We want people to have access to free speech. It's a very important part of a liberal democracy," Luxon said.
PM Modi in his address after holding bilateral talks with PM Luxon in New Delhi on March 17 had said that India has shared its concerns “about anti-India activities by certain illegal elements in New Zealand. We’re confident that we will continue to receive the full cooperation of the New Zealand Government against such illegal elements”.
PM Modi’s reference was to the Khalistan "referendum" that had taken place in Auckland's Aotea Square on November 17 last year.
Luxon told the daily that people in New Zealand have the “complete right” to free speech “and to protest” and they needed to so lawfully.
“But the bigger point I made to him as well, was that in New Zealand's multicultural environment, what we don't see, if you think about what you observe in other countries around the world, is a wholesale import of overseas politics into our domestic politics.”
The interviewer then asked about the Khalistani protest in Aotea Square where protesters allegedly chanted “kill Modi”, and asked Luxon: “Is that free speech?”
“Well again, we have laws and our police are entrusted to enforce the laws . . .we have free speech and protest, that's a very important part of any liberal democracy.”
He said his position on free speech was well established, and people should be able to come to New Zealand and express different points of view.
Luxon was then asked whether he could promise the Sikh community in New Zealand that they wouldn’t be extradited should the Indian government charge them with a crime like terrorism or secessionist activity.
“We have a legal framework for dealing with these sorts of issues. So it's very clear, if you're in New Zealand and you're a New Zealander operating within our liberal democracy we expect you to be compliant with our laws and our rules.”
Luxon said he wouldn’t speculate on hypothetical cases but, “at a principled level, we are very proud of our democracy. People should be able to exercise free speech and protest.”
He said overall he was “really proud” of what was achieved over the last week during his India tour.
“It's been really successful. These are two countries that actually should be doing a lot more together, and there's commitment from both Prime Minister Modi and myself and our respective teams to keep building that relationship.”
Luxon said that visa simplification, including multiple-entry visas for businesses and pathways for Indian students, would be discussed.
“Immigration is always one of those things you've got a lot of risk around but I think we're very open and we've signalled that.”
India’s Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal on March 21, answering a question on the issue, said that both PM Modi and the New Zealand PM had extensive talks. “If you were to look at the press statement that our Prime Minister made, it was very clear that we conveyed our concerns on anti-India activities of elements in New Zealand. And it is our hope that we will receive support from the New Zealand side in tackling these issues, which are of concern to us.”
The Auckland event of last year was organised by US-based Sikhs for Justice, which is banned in India. The SFJ has held similar events in cities in Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom.
The next such "referendum" is to be held in Los Angeles on March 23, 2025.
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